Green Onions

Gardeners who know their onions usually get their first spring workout in the vegetable plot, as you may have guessed, by planting onions. For one thing, late season frosts or cold snaps will not harm them; but equally important is the early yield of tasty green onions (scallions) that add zest to fresh salads and other culinary dishes before the harvest includes the large, dry cooking or table onions. Onions generally are grown from sets, although they also can be...

Ever made couscous? That's the fluffy pasta from North Africa used as a main or side dish. Couscous goes with any number of ingredients, but my taste buds go wild from couscous mixed with harissa and potatoes. Harissa is a hot chili paste also from North Africa. It can be red or green, depending upon the chilies used. Other seasonings reflect the origins of the recipe — or the chef's creativity. My version comes out more like a sauce and is faster and easier to create. Traditional dried chilis need...

Q--If you boil chicken, is there any protein loss, compared with baking or frying it? George Roberts, Homewood. A--Steve Pretanik, director of science and technology for the National Broiler Council in Washington, D.C., says "No. The amount of protein in chicken tissue remains basically the same whether the chicken is fried, roasted or boiled. But there is an increase in protein in fried chicken because of the batter which is added (the flour, milk and egg has a...

A treasure from Asia, seitan typically offers center-of-the-plate protein in vegetarian meals. The name, from the Japanese words for "ideal protein," was apparently coined by George Ohsawa, whose work and vision led to the macrobiotic movement in the 1960s. The chewy food is also called wheat meat, mock duck and crazy chicken. Centuries ago, Buddhist monks in China invented a method of washing the bran and starch from wheat flour, leaving the gluten and we began importing it to the U.S. in the late...

Running is not your thing. There's so much jostling involved. It's the sort of hobby best pursued by the lithe and lively. You are neither, nor. Yet you have been running. There is no good explanation, only a bad one: the dog. The dog spends his day hurtling from one window to the next, hunting down trespassers - say, the passing squirrel or a falling leaf - and directing each, loudly, to back off. Because you and the dog share a work space and because you are often short on...

A North Carolina outbreak of hepatitis A probably came from green onions, which also have been blamed for outbreaks linked to restaurants in Georgia, Tennessee and Pennsylvania, according to a preliminary state health report. The Georgia Division of Public Health found that the hepatitis A strain that sickened 16 people in North Carolina was the same as the one that afflicted 259 people in Georgia and likely came from the same source. The Georgia outbreak had been traced...

A simple, fresh, impromptu potato salad is a wonderful way to add a little extra greenery to a meal, and if you treat the salad right, it doesn't need to be heavy or mayonnaise-laden at all. Take this one, for instance -- not a smear of mayonnaise in sight. This salad has green onions for savory, and red radish slices for crunch and color. I also call for a couple specialty ingredients: smoked olive oil and citrus ponzu. The ponzu gives just a hint of zesty citrus flavor, and it cuts through the heaviness...

The cause of a hepatitis A outbreak in western Pennsylvania remained unclear as the number of people sickened rose to 410, but the Mexican restaurant chain that owns the eatery where the outbreak began said it was pulling green onions from its outlets as a precaution. The Louisville-based Chi Chi restaurant chain announced Thursday that it was removing green onions from every garnish, salsa and cooked dish that it offers at its 100 restaurants in the East and Midwest. ...

Ready-made guacamole and salsa are so easy to buy that you might wonder why you should prepare them yourself. Here are two good reasons. The recipes here are atypical renditions of the classic Mexican appetizer combo. On Memorial Day, it has become a tradition to serve my crowd a basket of fresh baked chips and this spicy flavor duo. The late chef Michael Roberts was the inventive Southern Californian who created a green pea guacamole. I was puzzled by the unusual yet pleasing quality of the green peas he...

A North Carolina outbreak of hepatitis A probably came from green onions, which also have been blamed for outbreaks linked to restaurants in Georgia, Tennessee and Pennsylvania, according to a preliminary state health report. The Georgia Division of Public Health found that the hepatitis A strain that sickened 16 people in North Carolina was the same as the one that afflicted 259 people in Georgia and likely came from the same source. The Georgia outbreak had previously been traced...

May signals the arrival of fresh garlic and green onions. Combine these signs of spring with tender young zucchini into one delicately flavored dish that tastes great and benefits your health. Green onions and garlic have reduced cold and flu symptoms since the Egyptians first built pyramids. Add zucchini, a good source of vitamin C and fiber, and you have a delicious, crunchy patty that stimulates both your taste buds and your health. Tips: You can use or combine green...

Meaty chicken thighs get a sweet-savory glaze from a mix of mustard and apricot jam. For a splash of color and crunch, run whole green onions brushed with oil under the broiler too. Look for a fresh blueberry pie at your favorite bakery or the bakery department of your supermarket. Menu Apricot-glazed chicken thighs Steamed white rice or pilaf Grilled green onions Salad of red and yellow tomatoes Blueberry pie with vanilla ice...

The scent of green garlic reminds me of tromping through woods and farm fields this spring on a quest for morels (ultimately a middling success, but fun, nonetheless, for the hunt). Thin wild onions (or leeks, we weren't quite sure) grew everywhere, giving off their pungent aroma as we followed my brother Paul around his favorite spots near his country home north of Indianapolis. We tried pulling up the thin shoots, but they clung stubbornly to the soil. Too much work, and...

Sales at Taco Bell restaurants have fallen sharply in the wake of an outbreak of E. coli food poisoning. "We will see a sharp drop-off in sales in this quarter and it will continue into the next quarter," said John Owens, an analyst with Morningstar Inc. Owens said it would not be surprising if sales have fallen as much as 90 percent in the affected area, where the chain closed an estimated 90 restaurants for a week or more in the wake of...

Farro is an ancient strain of wheat that looks like a plump barley kernel. You can find farro in natural food stores, gourmet food stores and now in many supermarkets. Don't confuse it with spelt. Spelt sometimes is called farro but tastes different and takes much longer to cook. Make sure to select whole grain farro; pearlized farro has the hull removed and cooks in half the time. Higher in protein than pasta or rice, farro can be used in stews, soups, salads or as a...

For a kid who gets decent grades and is headed to college next year, my 17-year-old son can be a knucklehead about breakfast. If something isn't at his fingertips as he stumbles out the door on his way to early morning football practice, he'll go without. You don't have to graduate summa cum laude to understand the value of a healthy breakfast, but try telling that to high school- and college-age warriors, running through life juggling academics, sports, activities and stress. They...

State and federal health officials said Saturday that Pennsylvania's hepatitis A outbreak is winding down, even as the number of those infected climbed above 600. The investigation shifted to how green onions linked to the case became contaminated. Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) met Saturday with Dr. Julie Gerberding, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and state health officials at a community college near the Beaver County Chi-Chi's restaurant where the outbreak...

Fusion is a scary concept. To the nuclear physicist, it's about squishing together two atoms until something explodes. To the cook, it's more or less the same idea: Take two perfectly nice cuisines and squish them together until something explodes. How else do we account for chicken caesar sushi? Pierogi pizza? Curried spaghetti? It's like pairing up freshmen in the dorm. The unlikely combination could work out. Or something might explode. The vintner believes earnestly in "terroir.